According to Beth Ferry and Tom Lichtenheld

Author: Beth Ferry
Illustrator: Tom Lichtenheld
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers (February 2019)

• Pages:  48
• Ages: 4 – 8

The rules being with this first page:

There are, / there most definitely are, / 10 / very specific, tried and true, / and absolutely essential / Rules For The Making of / a Birthday Wish.

Then the rules begin:

Rule 1 It must be your birthday.

Of course, there is a little leeway. Maybe a week before or after your birthday, unless you are a beetle, bug or insect . . . and if that’s the case the life cycle might not be a year but a month, week, or even a single day.

The second rule is that

You must have a PARTY!

There should be a celebration complete with games, laughter, and definitely hats. Food is good, and balloons are recommended unless

. . . you are a rhinoceros, a swordfish, a sea urchin, or pointy in any way, you may want to skip the balloons.

The rules continue with such things as needing to bake a cake, cannoli, cream puffs, or churros, Then, of course, you need a light, or lights, to blow out. And the rules continue to make their way to number 10:

Don’t forget that “wish” ends in “shhhhhh” so keep you wish quiet, silent, hush-hush.

And when your special day is over, you should close your eyes and dream of your wish coming true.

My Thoughts

What Concerned Me: I guess being somewhat sensitive, at least to some subjects, I immediately had some misgivings about how children would take this book who don’t have grand “hoopla” celebrations on their special day.  Rule 2 states that you “must” have a party. There are lots of reasons that people celebrate with small quiet family gatherings or even immediate family, no streamers, confetti, or balloons. I would have been much happier to see simple ways to celebrate mixed into this text. I already see too many examples of families seeming to outdo the next for their child’s party.

What I Liked Most: Okay, now that I’ve given my concerns, which may or may not be valid to many, this is still a very exuberant, happy, celebration story. Many of the scenes are so cute and the illustrations are extremely creative. I like that fun facts are worked into the text and that the book is created to celebrate a very special day.